Preseason All-ACC Teams Undervalue Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, Cal Receivers

Major preseason college football magazines don't give Cal players much respect

Cal quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Three of the main preseason college football magazines -- Athlon, Lindy's and Phil Steele -- provided their picks for 2026 all-ACC teams, and they don't give Cal players as much credit as they should.

A pretty good case could be made that Cal sophomore quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, wide receivers Ian Strong and Chase Hendricks and tight ends Dorian Thomas and Mason Mini will be among their best players in the conference at their positions.

However, no Cal players were named to the preseason first-team or second-team all-ACC teams by any of the three magazines, and Lindy’s did not have any Golden Bears player on its first-, second or third-team All-ACC squads.  

Cal defensive lineman Jayden Wayne earned fourth-team recognition by Athlon and Phil Steele, Bears running back Adam Mohammed was named to the fourth team by Athlon, Cal defensive back Ricky Fletcher was a fourth-team pick by Athlon, and punter Angus Davies was named to Phil Steele’s fourth team.

No complaints there.  It’s the quarterback and receiver positions where Cal players should have received more respect.

While acknowledging this website might have a little bias toward Cal players, we assess the all-ACC selections of the three magazines regarding Cal selections.

Preseason All-ACC Quarterbacks

ATHLON

First team: Darian Mensah, Miami

Second team: Kevin Jennings, SMU

Third team: CJ Bailey, North Carolina State

Fourth team: Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele

LINDY'S

First-team: Darian Mensay, Miami

Second team: CJ Bailey, North Carolina State

Third team: Kevin Jennings, SMU

PHIL STEELE

Furst team: Darian Mensah, Miami

Second team: Kevin Jennings, SMU

Third team: CJ Bailey, North Carolina State

Fourth team: Mason Heintschel, Pitt

Comment: If the ACC was loaded with elite quarterbacks, it would make sense that Sagapolutele would be nearly ignored for preseason all-ACC status.  But that’s not the case.  Darian Mensah is the only ACC player considered to be among the best quarterbacks in the country.

The fact that Sagapolutele’s only mention is a fourth-team pick by Athlon and is not a member of the first-, second-, third- or fourth-team preseason All-ACC selections of respected Phil Steele is interesting, and seems to go against all mounds of publicity Cal and Tosh Lupoi received for keeping Sagapolutele at Cal after his standout freshman season.

It’s noteworthy that Sagapolutele got better as the 2025 season went on, throwing seven touchdown passes with no interceptions over the final four games. It suggests Sagapolutele is on the rise.

However, Sagapolutele has two things working against him when it comes to preseason recognition.

First of all, a quarterback’s worth is always judged by the success of his team. The Bears were just 7-6 in 2025 and are not projected to challenge for an ACC title in 2026.

Secondly, Sagapolutele will be working with a head coach (Lupoi) who has never been a head coach before and an offensive coordinator (Jordan Somerville) who has never been a coordinator before.  That may cause “experts” to hesitate to predict great things for Sagapolutele.

His 2026 performance might convince them.

Preseason All-ACC Wide Receivers

ATHLON

First team: Malachi Toney, Miami ; Duce Robinson, Florida State; Cooper Barkate, Miami; Bryant Wesco Jr., Clemson

Second team: Tre Richardson, Louisville; T.J. Moore, Clemson; Yamir Knight, SMU; Que’Sean Brown, Virginia Tech

Third team: Ian Strong, Cal; Jordan Shipp, North Carolina; Carlos Hernandez, Wake Forest

Fourth team: Chase Hendricks, Cal; Micahi Danzy, Florida State; Cataurus Hicks, Pitt

LINDY'S

First team: Malachi Toney, Miami; Duce Robinson, Florida State

Second team: Cooper Barkate, Miami; Bryant Wesco Jr., Clemson

Third team: T.J. Moore, Clmson; Tre Richardson, Louisville

PHIL STEELE

First team: Bryant Wesco Jr., Clemson; Duce Robinson, Florida State; Malachi Toney, Miami.

Second team: Que’Sean Brown, Virginia Tech; T.J. Moore, Clemson; Cooper Barkate, Miami

Third team: Yamir Knight, SMU; Tre Richardson, Louisville; Jordan Shipp, North Carolina.

Fourth team: Ian Strong, Cal; Chase Hendricks, Cal; Carlos Henrandez, Wak Forest

Comment: We have less quibbling with these selections, but Cal’s Ian Strong and Chase Hendricks seem to be shortchanged a little.

Neither is selected for any of Lindy’s three All-ACC teams, and Strong (third-team Athlon, fourth-team Phil Stele) and Chase Hendricks (fourth-team Athlon and Phil Steele) should be a bit higher considering Lindy’s picked four wide receivers for its first and second team and Phil Steele selected three wide receivers for each of its four all-conference teams.

Hendricks’ status suffers from the perceived caliber of competition he faced. He led his conference in receiving yards in 2025 with 1,037, and was a second-team all-conference pick. But that conference was the Mid-American Conference, and Hendricks must prove he can have similar success in the ACC.

Strong ranked fifth in the Big Ten in receiving yards per game in 2025, but his status was hurt by the fact that he played second fiddle to Rutgers teammate DJ Duff, a second-team all-Big Ten pick, and played on a team that went 2-7 in the Big Ten.

He should stand out more at Cal.

Preseason All-ACC Tight Ends

ATHLON

First team: Luke Reynolds, Virginia Tech

Second team: Jeremiah Hasley, Duke; Kaelan Chudzinski, Boston College

Third team: Dorian Thomas, Cal; Brody Foley, Louisville

Fourth team: Elijah Lofton, Miami; Benji Blackburn, Stanford

LINDY'S

First team: Brody Foley, Louisville

Second team: Elijah Lofton, Miami

Third team: Olsen Patt-Henry, Clemson

PHIL STEELE

First team: Jeremiah Hasley, Duke

Second-team: Luke Reynolds, Virginia Tech

Third team: Gavin Harris, Georgia Tech

Fourth team: Benji Blackburn, Stanford

Comment: Like wide receiver Hendricks, Thomas’s status suffers because he did not play in a Power Four conference last season.  He was a first-team all-Mountain West selection at New Mexico in 2025, when he ranked second in the country in receptions by a tight end with 56. But he played in the Mountain West.

Mason Mini was Cal’s starting tight end last season as a redshirt sophomore, and his 35 catches, 387 receiving yards and four touchdown catches in 2025 rank first among returning Cal players. It seems he should get a whisper for all-conference honors but such was not the case.

The 2026 prospects for Mini and Thomas rest with how much playing time each will get. Thomas is likely to be the Bears’ starting tight end in 2026, but that is not a sure things. It’s possible that offensive coordinator Somerville will use two-tight end sets to get both on the field together, but if they share the position, it will be difficult for both players to rack up impressive numbers.